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Gov. Youngkin reacts to Trump’s actions amid ICE protests: ‘I fully support what he’s done’
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said he "fully supports" President Donald Trump's actions amid protests in Los Angeles against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations. President Trump ordered 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles on Sunday, later deploying 700 Marines. The Los Angeles Police Department says protesters have thrown objects at officers near the federal courthouse, prompting the use of gas canisters and other munitions. "We can't have cars being burned overnight and people rioting in the streets, tearing down not just business infrastructure and people's personal property, but threatening federal facilities as well," Youngkin said at an event in Richmond on Tuesday.
Study shows historically redlined Virginia neighborhoods are hotter in the summer
As hot and humid summer weather settles across Virginia, a recent study finds that certain neighborhoods across the state, often with higher populations of people of color, can be up to 15 degrees hotter than other areas. The research cites extreme heat as the cause of “more fatalities in the United States than any other weather phenomenon.” “There are differences in all of those municipalities in who is experiencing this heat, and usually it’s the neighborhoods that are least prepared to deal with it, have the poorest kind of infrastructure setup, such as air conditioning units and cooling centers,” said Dr. Todd Lookingbill, a professor of geology, environment and sustainability at the University of Richmond.
Trump reverses Army base names, including three in Virginia, in latest DEI purge
President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he plans to restore the names of seven Army bases that once honored Confederate leaders, relabeling them after soldiers who share the same last names. “We are also going to be restoring the names to Fort Pickett, Fort Hood, Fort Gordon, Fort Rucker, Fort Polk, Fort A.P. Hill and Fort Robert E. Lee,” Trump said. “We won a lot of battles out of those forts, it’s no time to change.” Trump’s announcement, during a speech to soldiers at Fort Bragg, follows a move during the Biden era to change the names of 10 installations to honor new, non-Confederate individuals. Those included changing Fort Hood to Fort Cavazos, for the Army’s first four-star Hispanic general.
Wood: Public must act now to prevent drilling off Virginia’s coast
Monday is the deadline for the public to make their comments known in an effort to prevent offshore drilling in Virginia and elsewhere. The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is required to propose a five-year schedule of oil and gas lease sales. Coastal communities are again vulnerable to offshore drilling. Thousands of square miles of ocean — out to 200 miles offshore of Virginia as well as beyond our coastline in either direction — remain at risk because a recent executive order from President Donald Trump attempts to undo previous protections of our federal waters.
Medicaid manager lays off 268 in Henrico after losing contract
Molina Healthcare Inc. will lay off 268 employees from its office on Gaskins Road in Henrico County after the company failed to win a new Medicaid contract with the state. Molina notified its employees in May and will close June 30, according to a notice filed with the state’s workforce department. The state’s Department of Medical Assistance Services opted not to award the California-based company a new contract starting July 1.
Shannon Taylor criticized for $650,000 Dominion Energy donations in attorney general race
Fourteen Virginia Democratic leaders have signed a letter calling for attorney general candidate Shannon Taylor to take action after ethical concerns were raised from her receiving more than half a million dollars in donations from Dominion Energy. The letter lists specific ways in which the alleged $650,000 worth of donations are an ethical dilemma that would create a conflict of interest in the event of her being elected.
As Energy Costs Surge, Eastern Governors, Including Youngkin, Blame a Grid Manager
For decades, a little-known nonprofit organization has played a central role in keeping the lights on for 65 million people in the Eastern United States. Even some governors and lawmakers acknowledge that they were not fully aware of how much influence the organization, PJM, has on the cost and reliability of energy in 13 states. The electrical grid it manages is the largest in the United States. But now some elected leaders have concluded that decisions made by PJM are one of the main reasons utility bills have soared in recent years. They said the organization had been slow to add new solar, wind and battery projects that could help lower the cost of electricity. And they say the grid manager is paying existing power plants too much to supply electricity to their states. ... The Republican governor of Virginia, Glenn Youngkin, called on the organization to fire its chief executive in a letter obtained by The Times.
2 Republicans seek the nod from their party in the race to fill Del. Jed Arnold’s seat
Two Republican candidates are vying for their party’s nomination for the 46th District race, in a bid to represent the most conservative district out of the three open seats in this year’s House of Delegates election. Mitchell Cornett and Adam Tolbert, both Republicans, signaled their intention to run for the seat after Del. Jed Arnold, R-Smyth County, announced he would not seek reelection in March. He cited his wife’s struggle with long COVID and the need to support his family through her illness as the driving factor in his decision.
14 Democrats ask attorney general candidate Shannon Taylor to recuse herself from Dominion cases
A Virginia congressman and 11 current Democratic legislators are calling on attorney general candidate Shannon Taylor to address what they call “serious ethical concerns” over the roughly $650,000 her campaign has received from Dominion Energy. They warn that what they call “unprecedented contributions” from a regulated utility raise potential conflicts of interest and could undermine public trust in the office. All 14 signers of the letter — including a former congressman and a former delegate — have endorsed Taylor’s Democratic opponent, former Del. Jay Jones, D-Norfolk, in the June 17 primary for attorney general.
Alexandria becomes first in Virginia to ban gas leaf blowers
The City of Alexandria became the first jurisdiction in Virginia to approve a ban on gas-powered leaf blowers at City Council’s May 17 public hearing in a unanimous vote to go into effect starting July 1. Council decided to phase out the use of gas-powered leaf blowers after one year for the city and after 18 months for residents and businesses. Council previously discussed the issue at their May 13 legislative meeting, where they reduced the ban’s phase-in period to 18 months from two years. The ordinance will go into effect July 1, according to a May 13 city staff presentation.